Tag: family-member
-
Unraveling the Mysteries of the Florida Exemptions for Life Insurance and Annuity Contracts, Part 1
Florida has laws that protect residents’ assets, like their primary residence, life insurance, annuities, retirement accounts, and education savings accounts. In this two-part article, we’ll look at the rules for protecting life insurance and annuities in Florida. Part one focuses on how life insurance is protected after the insured person passes away, how the policy…
-
Challenging Inter Vivos Transfers Procured by Undue Influence: Factors to Consider
Florida has a lot of people who take advantage of elderly people. When someone is coerced into giving away their stuff, it might be seen as undue influence and could be reversed. The courts have guidelines for challenging a contested will, but it’s not as clear for gifts given while the person is still alive.…
-
The Impact of Co-ownership on Florida Homestead
The Florida Supreme Court says there are three types of homestead, all meant to protect the family home. Co-ownership of property, like owning it with someone else, can affect these protections. For example, it can impact tax benefits for the home. If you own a home and live there, you can get a tax break…
-
Estate Planning Considerations for Out-of-state Property
If you own property in another state, it’s important to include it in your estate plan. Make sure your legal documents show that you intend to live in Florida, to avoid extra taxes and legal issues. Use strategies like trusts and joint ownership to avoid extra probate processes for your out-of-state property. If you have…
-
Shedding Light on Keeping Beneficiaries in the Dark
A trustee has a big responsibility to keep beneficiaries of a trust informed about how the trust is being managed. Florida law says that the trustee has to share their contact information with the beneficiaries, let them know when an irrevocable trust is set up, and give them the opportunity to see the trust document…
-
Estate Planning: Death Soon After Divorce
During a divorce, it’s common for people to want to change their will and other documents right away. But in Florida, the law already protects divorced people from their ex-spouse inheriting their assets, even if they forget to update their will. However, it’s important to make sure beneficiary forms for things like life insurance and…
-
Putting Conventional Probate Concepts to the Test: Parker v. Parker and the Decedentâs Estate as an Indispensable Party
The recent court decision in Parker v. Parker highlights the confusion in Florida law about who can bring a case to get back assets transferred by someone before they died. Some cases say the decedent’s family can bring the case, while others say it should be the personal representative of the estate. The Parker case…
-
Access to Digital Assets Florida’s New Law for Fiduciaries: What Are Digital Assets and Why Are They Relevant?
Digital assets, like social media, email accounts, online banking, and digital currency, have value and need to be protected. Florida has a new law that lets certain people, like guardians, access these assets. Federal laws and terms-of-service agreements also protect digital assets from unauthorized access. The SCA makes it a crime to access digital communication…
-
The Shifting Landscape of Guardianship Law: Three Consecutive Years of Changes
Changes to Florida’s guardianship laws in the past few years have been focused on providing more protection for wards and stricter scrutiny of guardians. These changes came about due to concerns about abuses by professional guardians and the need to improve the system. The Legislature made substantial changes to the Guardianship Code in 2014, 2015,…
-
The New Florida Family Trust Company Act
The Florida Family Trust Company Act was signed into law in 2014, allowing for the creation and regulation of family trust companies (FTCs) in Florida. FTCs provide trust services for family members and also offer investment and administrative services. Before this law, there was no way for FTCs to operate in Florida. Existing FTCs need…
-
Can Selection of a Trustee Be a Material Purpose Under F.S. §736.0706(2)(d)?
When someone creates a trust, they choose who will be in charge of it, called the trustee. In Florida, the law allows the beneficiaries of the trust to ask the court to remove the trustee for certain reasons. One of those reasons is called “no-fault removal,” and it has four requirements. The court can remove…
-
Where the Presumption of Undue Influence Should Not Apply: Consider the Dutiful Son and the Dutiful Daughter Exceptions
More than 30 years ago, the Florida Supreme Court outlined a list of factors called the Carpenter factors that can be used to show if someone influenced a person to create a will or trust in their favor. This changed the way probate and trust cases are handled because it made it easier for someone…
-
The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act: A Solution in Search of a Problem
The Florida Bar Journal recently talked about the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA), saying it’s better for heirs’ rights. But Florida’s current probate law already protects those rights. The UPHPA may cause more problems than it solves. Florida law allows property to be divided and sold fairly. So, the UPHPA may not be…
-
Fiduciary Duty: A Foundational Tenet Trending Back Into the Forefront
In the next 15 years, a lot of older people in the U.S. will pass on their money and assets to their families, which will be the biggest transfer of wealth ever in the country. Most of this money is owned by people over 60 years old, and they are expected to pass on $4.1…
-
Taking the Quick Out of Quitclaim Deeds
The Dingle v. Dellinger case is a reminder for attorneys to be careful when preparing transfer deeds for real estate. In this case, the attorney made a mistake in the deed, and the people who were supposed to receive the property sued the attorney for negligence, even though they weren’t the attorney’s clients. This case…
-
What We Got Here Is Failure to Communicate: The Legal, Ethical, and Monetary Considerations of Effective Communication
The American Bar Association says that lawyers must provide interpreters or translators for clients who have trouble speaking English or who are Deaf. Lawyers also have to make sure they understand their clients and that their clients understand them, even if there are cultural differences. If a lawyer doesn’t do this, it’s considered discrimination and…
-
The Disproportionate Impact of Heirs Property in Florida’s Low-Income Communities of Color
Heirs’ property is when multiple people own a piece of land together, often because a family member died without a will. This can make it hard for people to sell or take care of the property. It affects African-American families more, especially in the southeastern United States. In Florida, when someone dies without a will,…
-
Florida Irrevocable Grantor Homestead Trust: Having Your Cake and Eating it Too Second Course
The FIGHT is a way for people in Florida to pass on their homes to their family without having to worry about certain restrictions. But it’s important to understand the tax implications of using a FIGHT, because it could affect estate, gift, and income taxes. Basically, using a FIGHT means that the home will still…
-
Florida Irrevocable Grantor Homestead Trust: Having Your Cake and Eating It Too â First Course
The saying “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” means you can’t have two good things at once. But in Florida, using a special trust called a Florida Irrevocable Grantor Homestead Trust (FIGHT), you might be able to keep the benefits of homestead protection without some of the drawbacks. The FIGHT is a…
-
The Family Medical Leave Act Ten Years Later
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) turned 10 recently. It requires bigger employers to give employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for serious health issues or having a baby. There have been lots of legal battles about this law. This article looks at important court decisions about the FMLA and what they…
-
Preparing the Workplace for a Pandemic
Florida employers need to prepare for possible pandemics like avian influenza, SARS, or bioterrorism by taking steps to ensure their workplaces are safe. The risk of a pandemic illness is significant enough to warrant the time and resources needed to keep business operations running. Employers should promote quarantine effectiveness, social distancing, and preventative hygiene to…
-
Family Responsibility Discrimination: The EEOC Weighs in on Unlawful Disparate Treatment of Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued guidelines in 2007 to address discrimination against workers with caregiving responsibilities. These guidelines are used by EEOC offices and can be influential in court cases involving discrimination against caregivers. Although being a caregiver is not a protected category under the law, the guidelines aim to prevent unfair treatment…
-
Adverse Employment Actions Based on Associational Disability Discrimination
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with disabilities from discrimination in the workplace. But did you know that it also protects people who are associated with someone who is disabled? This means that if you have a friend or family member with a disability, you cannot be discriminated against at work because of…
-
Domestic Violence: Why the Florida Legislature Must Do More to Protect the Silent Victims
A nurse and a doctor at a busy hospital saw a woman who was hit in the eye and is seeing flashing lights. The doctor didn’t mention the hit or the person who hit her, and just said she had a face injury and high blood pressure. The doctor didn’t ask about any abuse the…